Mayor Adams said he would still run for reelection even if the city’s Campaign Finance Board rules he’s not eligible for matching funds — a huge potential hit to his campaign warchest as he faces several mayoral challengers.
“With or without, it’s straight ahead,” Adams said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Adams, who signaled last week that he’s banking on the matched funds, could lose millions if denied from the program.
Scrutiny of the mayor’s use of the city’s public campaign finance system has increased after Adams’ indictment late last month — with feds alleging Adams sought and accepted thousands in illegal straw donations for his 2021 and 2025 campaign from Turkish foreign agents. The feds say the illegal donations allowed the campaign to leverage matching funds, which totaled about $10 million during the 2021 campaign.
Front page of the New York Daily News for Sept. 26, 2024: Adams to face charges in federal corruption probe, but vows in defiant message to stay in office. Mayor Adams (via video) responds to federal criminal indictment Wednesday night, saying he is innocent.
The mayor’s most recent fundraising haul totaled $146,151, with overall campaign funds sitting at around $4 million. Around $500,000 of those funds would be eligible for the matching program.
Vito Pitta, Adams’ campaign compliance attorney, previously told the Daily News that, with estimated public matching funds factored in, Adams’ campaign chest is at over $8 million — more than the $7.9 million cap on spending for primary elections.
The CFB has said they’ll make the decision before the matching funds are dispersed in mid-December.
“They have a job to do, they’re gonna do their job,” Adams said of the board. “I have a job to do as the mayor.”
The Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office indicted Adams on bribery and fraud charges in late September. Prosecutors say in the indictment that the mayor accepted bribes and illegal donations in exchange for carrying out favors.
It’s illegal for foreign nationals to donate to U.S. political candidates.
Adams has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Front page of the New York Daily News for Sept. 28, 2024: Adams enters pleas to fed corruption charges. Mayor Adams enters Manhattan Federal Court Friday in bribery and fraud case tied to campaign fundraising.
The city’s public matching funds program currently nets candidates an $8-to-$1 match and a limit of $2,100 per donor. The program is intended to help candidates to run without wealthy donors.
The Campaign Finance Board came out with proposed changes to their rules, including one that says the Board could decide a candidate would not get matching funds if they are found to have violated certain city rules around fund matching, Gothamist reported.
“As an independent nonpartisan agency, all rules’ changes proposed by the Campaign Finance Board are in service of making our matching funds program stronger, up to date with elections and fundraising and more responsive to New Yorkers,” CFB Executive Director Paul Ryan said in a statement. “This particular change clarifies existing rules for campaigns to qualify for matching funds, such that if campaigns fail to meet certain criteria they would be ineligible for payment.”
Pitta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
At a press conference last week, Adams suggested he was counting on the matched funds to bankroll his campaign.
“We were at the max,” he said. “And so we were pivoting shifts. We had just a small amount to raise.”